The office of former president Mohamed Waheed Hassan Manik on Tuesday released a statement confirming his resignation as special envoy to President Mohamed Muizzu, following public backlash over his past contact with convicted child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
The statement acknowledged Epstein’s sexual abuse and exploitation, expressed support for survivors, and said Waheed regretted any association with Epstein. It said Waheed had submitted his resignation due to what it described as the “toxicity” surrounding any link to Epstein and his inability to continue effectively in his current mandate.
According to the statement, Waheed said his interactions with Epstein were limited to professional contexts and that neither he nor his family were aware of, or witnessed, any criminal conduct. It added that Epstein was never paid and had no financial dealings with Waheed or the Maldives government.
The office said Waheed and his team failed to carry out due diligence before the first meeting with Epstein and that Waheed was unaware of Epstein’s 2008 conviction at the time. The statement said Waheed would not have continued contact had he known of Epstein’s criminal history.
It listed two meetings at Epstein’s New York residence, on 23 September 2012 and 18 May 2014, and said the first meeting was scheduled officially with coordination from the President’s Office and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Waheed was appointed special envoy by President Muizzu on 26 May 2025. At the appointment meeting, Muizzu described Waheed as a seasoned diplomat and urged him to use his experience to advance diplomatic interests and explore economic opportunities abroad.
The resignation follows days of public criticism after the United States Department of Justice released a new tranche of Epstein-related court records on 30 January 2026. The documents show sustained email contact between Waheed and Epstein from February 2012, including discussions on media strategy, foreign access, state finances and meetings in New York. The records do not show any criminal conduct by Waheed.
Before Tuesday’s statement, neither Waheed nor the Muizzu government had commented publicly, prompting criticism and anger on social media. Opponents accused the government of hypocrisy and said the silence was at odds with its religious messaging and stated commitment to moral governance.
The lack of an official response also drew comparisons with developments abroad. In the United Kingdom, senior political figure Peter Mandelson resigned after renewed scrutiny of past links to Epstein following the document release. In Slovakia, a senior adviser to Prime Minister Robert Fico also stepped aside after media reports linked him to Epstein.
The newly released documents show Waheed contacted Epstein associates on 7 February 2012, the day he assumed office following the contested resignation of former president Mohamed Nasheed. The correspondence continued after Waheed left office and included references to political strategy, development projects and financing.
The disclosures were made under a transparency law passed by the US Congress in late 2025.
As of Tuesday, the Muizzu government has not commented on the matter, except for a brief press release published on the President’s Office website confirming Waheed’s resignation.